Expectations Slightly Lower

The ZEW Indicator of Economic Sentiment for Germany dropped by 2.0 points in June 2017 and now stands at 18.6 points. The indicator thus still remains below the long-term average of 23.9 points. By contrast, the assessment of the current economic situation in Germany improved once again in June. The indicator climbed by 4.1 points to 88.0 points. This is the highest level since July 2011. Despite a slight drop in expectations, the prospects for the economic growth in Germany in the coming six months remain rather positive. “The prospects for the German economy remain favourable. This is not least due to the positive GDP growth in the European Union in the first quarter of 2017. 70.8 per cent of the financial market experts expect the current situation to remain as favourable as it is at the moment, and 23.9 per cent even expect it to improve in the coming six months,” comments ZEW President Professor Achim Wambach.

The indicator reflecting the financial market experts’ expectations regarding the economic development in the eurozone increased by 2.6 points in June, bringing the expectation indicator up to a current level of 37.7 points. At the same time, the indicator for the current economic situation in the eurozone climbed 2.2 points compared to May and currently stands at 20.5 points. The expectations regarding the inflation rate in the eurozone declined slightly by 0.6 points to a new level of 16.4 points. The majority of financial market experts expects the inflation rate to remain on a moderate level.

For further information please contact

Dr. Michael Schröder, Phone +49 (0)621/1235-368, E-mail schroeder@zew.de

Lea Steinrücke, Phone +49 (0)621/1235-311, E-mail steinruecke@zew.de

More information and studies on the ZEW Indicator of Economic Sentiment and the release dates 2017 (as PDF file, 28 KB) and the historical time series (as Excel file, 81 KB)